“What are you doing here? And why are you dressed like that?” She wasn’t in so much pain as to miss how little he was wearing. She noticed the complete absence of gooseflesh on his body, despite the chill that was in the air. A chill she had just become acutely aware of herself.
Her teeth were chattering. The hem of her thin cotton nightgown had also gotten soaked. She lifted it away from her skin, closing her eyes, in part to will away the stinging, and also because she was afraid to look. Last time she’d gotten lucky. But who knew how long it would take her to heal from this exposure? Her doctors had warned her that the disease could become progressive, each reaction worsening. What had she been thinking, acting out so recklessly? Foolishly.
Cosimo dropped to the sand beside her.
“What am I doing here in my running clothing?” His velvety voice wrapped around her like a warm, dry towel. There was a hint of laughter and wonder to it. “I think I told you about my condition. It’s made me into a creature of the night. I stopped to admire the bioluminescence. And now, perhaps you want to tell me whyyouare glowing?”
Goldie opened one eye cautiously to survey the damage. A moment later, both her eyes flew open. He wasn’t kidding.
It wasn’t just her foot. Tiny bright speckles sparkled all over her body like a map of the heavens. Everywhere the water had splashed against her glowed with an otherworldly iridescent sheen. The tiny spots practically pulsed with a blue-green light. Suddenly, her skin felt like it was growing too tight. She couldn't swallow. Goldie recalled the doctor’s warning again. She tried to speak, but gasped instead. How short the distance to the ocean had been, and how far the distance to her house, where she kept her emergency injections, was now.
“Ondalune?” Cosimo stared at her, concern radiating from the depths of his unfathomably dark eyes.
Why are you using that name?The edges of her world were ruffling like wind across the water.
And then his arms were around her, paradoxically cold and warm at once.
“Shhhh,” he soothed, whispering in her ear. “It’s going to be okay. You’re going to be okay.”
She didn’t have the energy to protest as he held her foot in his hands, massaging the sting away. His cool touch put an immediate stop to the prick of pins and stab of needles. It left only a trail of warmth in its wake. From here, he moved up her legs, gently extinguishing the pinpricks of light on her knees and the back of one thigh. Then he moved on to her arm. Finally, his hands raked through her hair, erasing the white dots that clung to her strands. His touch left behind golden streaks that she hadn’t seen for decades. After he kissed her cheek, he bent his head and exhaled against her collarbone. She felt the dry winds of a distant desert chasing the last vestiges of the sea’s damp ache away.
By the time he lifted his head and released her, she was completely dry and back to her normal self.
Not that there was anything normal about her. Of this she had never been more sure.
“What were you thinking, Ondalune?” Cosimo rested his head in his hands.
Goldie didn’t have any answers. Only questions.
“Who are you really, Cosimo?” She swallowed, staring out past the surf where she could see a pair of dolphins chasing each other. Their glowing trails formed a helix that was completely intertwined. The tide was turning, and she swore she could hear them calling to one another to head back out into the channel. “And what am I?”
The ley lines don’t care about your plans or your fears. They respond to your truth. A wavering heart makes for a dangerous port. When you attempt to traverse time rather than merely space, this principle becomes even more critical. The temporal currents read your deepest intentions like a book. Not the story you tell yourself, but the one written in your bones.
BURNSIDE PORTER,THE WAY OF THE LEY
Chapter16
This is Just a Test
Back at the Mudpuddle Bookstore and Cafe, Will watched Cormac, the betta fish, swimming lazily in circles in his bowl. The villainous fish puffed up his body and glared at Will. The shimmering fins reminded him of unstable ley lines.
Seated across the table from him in the turret reading nook, Zani was laying out an array of items beside her satchel, considering them one by one.
“Do you really think all this stuff is necessary?” Will asked. He picked up a flat, disc-shaped lava rock the size of a small saucer and knocked it against the table. Nothing happened.
Zani snatched it away. “Don’t mess with my Mufflestone, Will!” She frowned. “I can’t fall asleep without it.”
“But I don’t even see the point of packing it. This is just an experimental port. We’re not planning on staying and spending the night!” He picked up a colorful, hand-knotted bracelet with a mosquito motif. “And what’s this one for? Does it repel bugs? Because we’re not even planning to go outside, Zani!”
“It’s also a lighthearted and whimsical accessory that brings a bit of charm to any ensemble,” Zani said defensively. “You never know when it might come in handy. The world is rife with no-see-ums.” Zani slipped the Bug Banishing Bracelet into the side pocket of her bag. “What’s it to you anyway, Will? My satchel can hold all our essentials without adding any additional weight, so there’s no need for you to worry about what goes into it.”
“Just so long as you don’t pack any crystals or gems.” Will set aside a compass. “It’s going to be tricky enough navigating the temporal dimension without additional interference.”
“Got it.” Zani looked over the items. “I don’t think I’ve got anything here that contains any crystals or gems of any sort.” She shuffled the remaining items, arranging them into neat rows, from largest to smallest.
Will loved watching her as she concentrated and reconsidered her gear. She was soserious.
“You’resureyou want to do this?” he asked. “You don’t think there’s another, less risky way we could learn more about the bloodstone? Perhaps a visit to one of the other archives maintained by the Society? Or maybe we set up a meeting with Amrita Berman? The Director might meet with us to help us research.” His stomach was an unfamiliar mixture of knots and butterflies. The prospect of adventuring into a new dimension with Zani was thrilling. But the potential for danger was not. Will wasn’t scared for himself. He was worried about her.
